Middlesex chair Richard Sykes to resign after revolt by club's former players

Sykes tells board of decision to quit after three years at the helm

Richard Sykes is set to resign as chair of Middlesex in the latest change of leadership at the beleaguered county club, with the move coming after repeated calls from ex-players led by the former Middlesex and England captain Mike Gatting for him to stand down.

Sykes has told the board of his decision to quit after three years as chair, with members to be informed later this week. His impending departure will follow that of Andrew Cornish, who was dismissed as chief executive in June after the club received a complaint about his alleged behaviour from a fellow member of staff — an allegation Cornish denies. The England and Wales Cricket Board's cricket disciplinary committee is understood to have upheld misconduct charges brought against Cornish, but he has launched an appeal so the decision has yet to be made public.

Harrington accepts resignation and will lead hunt for successor

Since Cornish's dismissal, Middlesex have been led by the interim chief executive Julie Harrington, a former chief executive of British Cycling and the British Horseracing Authority, who was appointed on a temporary basis in July. Harrington has accepted Sykes's resignation and will lead the search for his replacement.

Crucially, Sykes's exit is not related to the allegations made against Cornish or the club's handling of the complaint, but instead follows repeated criticism from members and former players about his leadership. The Middlesex board has commissioned two independent reviews of the club's governance, and Sykes has accepted that the club requires fresh leadership.

The Gatting-led letter that put the chair under siege

The pressure on Sykes has been building since the spring. On the eve of the county season in April, a group of distinguished Middlesex veterans — including Gatting, the former West Indies batter Desmond Haynes and the ex-England internationals Mark Ramprakash, John Emburey, Mike Selvey and Clive Radley — wrote an open letter in which they condemned the club.

"The club is structurally a mess, is devoid of accountability and lacks proper checks and balances."

The former players called on Sykes to resign at the club's AGM later that month, but he refused to go, despite their complaint that "the club has been poorly led for too long". The sustained campaign from some of the county's most celebrated names has now ultimately claimed its intended target.

Another director departs as the exodus gathers pace

In another significant change, Middlesex confirmed this month that the director of cricket, Alan Coleman, is leaving after five years at the end of the season — meaning the club will soon have a new chair, chief executive and director of cricket in the space of a few months.

On-field frustration, with one last shot at silverware

Middlesex have endured another largely disappointing season on the field, failing to win promotion from Division Two of the County Championship for the third successive year. There remains, however, a late chance to salvage the campaign: the club have reached the final of the One-Day Cup and could win their first trophy for 10 years against Leicestershire at Trent Bridge on Sunday.

A club weighed down by financial and governance problems

Longstanding financial problems, caused by a long-term tenancy at Lord's that places severe limitations on their ability to generate revenue, have been compounded by a series of governance and disciplinary issues in recent years. In September 2023 the club were given a suspended points deduction, fined £50,000 and placed in special measures by the ECB after being found to have breached financial regulations, including the misuse of central funding.

The legal exposure continues to grow, too: the former chief executive Richard Goatley is suing the club for more than £1m in a personal injury lawsuit, while Cornish could also take legal action for constructive dismissal.

Under Sykes and Cornish, the club attempted to bring in £20m of external funding from a US group to help build a new ground in west London to provide an additional venue to Lord's, but the ECB ruled that third-party investment would constitute a breach of the county partnership agreement and jeopardise their central funding.

Middlesex declined to comment.